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Is There an Inherited Family Alcohol Gene?

Keep track of your daily basis, ask yourself – are my drinking habits safe or risky? It’s tricky to spot the difference between alcohol addiction and having a drink every once in awhile. ‘Harmful drinking’ happens when there is a pattern of drinking which can cause damage to your health. Pay attention to your daily or weekly habits; this can give you an idea of your patterns and indicate whether or not you have a drinking problem. For the study, researchers investigated data from 672 pairs of adult twins who were interviewed twice, a decade apart.

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For many, alcohol dependence begins early and is influenced by peer behavior. A desire to impress their friends and fit in can supersede the risk they know is involved. There’s a growing movement of Moms who revel a little too much in “wine o‘clock,” particularly on social media. Not surprisingly, it’s become increasingly popular during the pandemic, with alcohol consumption up by 14%. Peer groups – people, especially youth, who hang out in social groups that use alcohol or drugs are more likely to use themselves.

• Individuals who suffer from mental illness often turn to alcohol as a coping mechanism.
• Other research has revealed that the same variation in the same gene as occurs in Europeans also influences risk in people of Asian descent, but that data was not included in this study.
• For lower-income individuals, those polled fell into wildly different categories — some drinking heavily, some not at all.
• If anyone is exposed to large amounts of an addictive substance over an extended period, it is likely that their brain will rewire to crave the substance.
• Environment affects how genes are expressed, and learned behaviors can change how a person perceives drugs or alcohol.

There are things that you can do to reduce your risk of alcoholism, including avoiding binge drinking and controlling your environment and triggers, so that you can make healthier choices when it comes to drinking responsibly. It’s well-known that individuals with a family history of alcoholism are at a higher risk of becoming alcoholics. A growing body of scientific evidence seems to confirm alcoholism and a genetic predisposition.

The Role of Genetics in Alcoholism

The inaccuracy of that statement is that it is absolute; it infers that, as a rule, a child of an alcoholic will always be an alcoholic – which could be damaging for those who have an alcoholic parent. There are gene variations that could predispose a person is alcoholism inherited to mental illnesses like depression and schizophrenia. People with mental illness are more prone to turn to alcohol as a coping mechanism. Get professional help from an addiction and mental health counselor from BetterHelp via phone, video, or live-chat.

By Buddy T

Buddy T is a writer and founding member of the Online Al-Anon Outreach Committee with decades of experience writing about alcoholism. Because he is a member of a support group that stresses the importance of anonymity at the public level, he does not use his photograph or his real name on this website. The sensitive mice tend to lose their inhibitions and pass out rather quickly, earning them the nickname «long sleepers.» «Short sleepers» are mice that are genetically less sensitive to alcohol. They seem to lose fewer inhibitions and tolerate alcohol for longer before they pass out. Consistently ranked a top medical school for research, Washington University School of Medicine is also a catalyst in the St. Louis biotech and startup scene.

Heredity and Genetics From a Medical Perspective

Washington University School of Medicine’s 1,500 faculty physicians also are the medical staff of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s hospitals. The School of Medicine is a leader in medical research, teaching and patient care, ranking among the top 10 medical schools in the nation by U.S. Through its affiliations with Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s hospitals, the School of Medicine is linked to BJC HealthCare. This work was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute of Mental Health and previously was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).